A Change Of Fate
by 2-5-9
Summary: What if Aang had been found by Zuko? AU
1. Prologue

Here we go, I suppose. It's an idea I've had for a long time, and, well, let's see what you guys think.

* * *

**Prologue**

"So… What's the chance you'll tell the truth _this time_, when I ask why we're here?" the blind earthbender asked.

"Slim to none," Mai muttered under her breath.

"Why, you don't believe me?" Azula asked. "You've been coming for _years _and even then, you've never seen the harbor. Isn't that a problem?"

"Well, maybe," Toph agreed, "but not one that can't wait 'till I've, you know, _packed out_! Unless there's happening something _else_ today? Something you're not telling?"

"Not that you'd be the one unpacking anyway." Not furthering the conversation wasn't going to keep Mai from coming with comments.

"Mai has an excellent point," Azula said, avoiding the question yet again. "But, really, can't you just enjoy spending some time with us?"

"I am," Toph defended, "I'd just also like to meet some of the people I know in the slum. And as a matter of fact, I _do_ unpack at least _part _of my baggage myself."

"I don't touch the wardrobe," she added after a moment.

"Well, I managed to get you all the way down here. It'd be rather stupid if we were to turn around now," Azula concluded.

"Point," Mai said.

"Good point," Toph agreed.

Azula started to show her company some of the warships. The thirteen year old princess was pleased with her ability to convince them.

Mai didn't seem very interested in the ships, but Azula hadn't expected her to be anyway.

Toph seemed more in to it, but as she had to actually _do_ something to understand what Azula was talking about, her not caring equal as Mai, would come of as more interested.

After the lectures on firenation navyships, the girls decided it was time to take a break. Azula arranged for a table to be sat up outside, apparently because it would be too warm inside.

Toph once heard Azula mutter something like "He's taking his time…" but didn't pay much attention to it.

The topics the girls talked about weren't that important; "How was the trip to the capital?" "Have you heard of the new play on Ember Island?" "The weather's nice, huh?"

Mai noticed that Azula kept looking out at the horizon, but didn't pay much attention to it.

By the time they had run out of incredibly boring subjects, Azula was visibly running out of patience.

Then she saw something.

"Finally!" she exclaimed.

"What?" Toph asked, bored.

"Well… I think there's a small ship on the horizon," Mai commented.

"Ladies, get up," Azula said smirking, suddenly interested.

As the ship neared the harbor, the girls got up and placed themselves as a welcome committee.

The closer the ship got the more details Mai could see. It was rather old, and it had been some time since it had last been repaired. There was no crew on deck, and Mai found no clue to who owned the ship.

It was Toph, who found out first. As the ship touched the ground before anyone got out, she got the first view.

"Zuko!" she gasped.


	2. Chapter 1

_**A Change Of Fate**_

**Chapter 1**

It was indeed Zuko, and as he stood in his ship with his men behind him and his uncle beside him, it looked like he actually was in control of the situation for once. An image Azula made a point in destroying:

"You're late."

"I… had some problems at the border."

"I hear you have the Avatar in your possession?" she continued.

"Yes, this way," Zuko said, gesturing toward the inner ship.

Azula wasn't pleased with this, but decided to follow. Toph and Mai followed as well. Iroh decided to stay on solid ground.

"Tell me there's a good reason, why you're prisoner _isn't_ bound and gagged and ready to go," she ordered.

"That would be because he's not a prisoner," Zuko said smirking.

The sheer stupidity of that statement made Azula stop in her tracks. "_What?_" she managed to get out.

"He's not a prisoner," Zuko repeated. "He's an ally."

"How?" Azula inquired.

"I didn't tell him about the war," he explained confidently. "Or that it was the _Fire Nation_ that killed the airnomads."

"But you _did_ mention they're dead?" Azula said.

"A minor slip-up."

"And none of your crew screwed it up?" she asked, wondering how _he_ ended up with a competent crew.

"None," he said proudly.

"Why didn't he know?"

"He… was in an iceberg or something for a hundred years without getting older. I don't really get how."

"So what did you tell him?"

"I told him there have been some rather strained bonds between the nations, so he shouldn't expect seeing anyone not from the Fire Nation when we arrived."

"Is that all?"

"Well, I… _sorta_… let it slip that all the airbenders dying _might_ have something to do with Sozin's Comet," Zuko confessed.

"_What_?" Azula snipped.

"He might not have figured it out. He was pretty confused, coming right out of an iceberg."

Azula calmed herself and turned her head towards Toph. The blind girl nodded; "He's telling the truth."

"Fine. Let's go."

***

Aang had been told to stay in his room when the ship docked in; in fact he had been told to stay under deck since they entered Fire Nation territory. He didn't understand why, – Zuko was still a _prince_, despite being banished for whatever reasons he wouldn't explain, what could happen? – but figured they knew best.

He had decided to practice some airbending, while waiting for someone to tell him, he could leave. He had been practicing the airscooter, when he heard someone on the corridor.

He had expected Zuko, maybe lieutenant Jee or some other crewmember, to be the one to get him, so what he saw caught him by surprise: Zuko – no surprises there, of course – and three girls; one looked… evil, and the other two seemed like different ways of being bored – one didn't seem to look at anything, and the other seemed to not care about what she looked at.

Aang noticed that the not-looking girl first seemed to notice when he touched the ground.

It was Zuko who spoke; "This is Aang, the Avatar. Aang, this is Azula, my sister" he said, gesturing towards the evil looking girl, "Toph," putting a hand the shoulder of the not-looking girl, "and Mai." and at last motioning towards the bored looking girl.

Aang bowed; an airnomad bow. "It's a pleasure to meet you," he said. "And an honor," he quickly added, remembering what Zuko had taught him.

"He's gonna need something to cover the arrow. Go get a hat, Mai," was the first thing Azula said.

"Of course," Mai said and left.

"You must be the princess," Aang said, directed at Azula.

"Indeed." She smirked.

He looked at his new friends again. He noticed something surprising about Toph. "Wait, your eyes-"

"Yes, I'm blind. Thanks for noticing," she interrupted.

"They're green," Aang finished.

"Well, that too."

"You're from the Earth Kingdom?" he asked.

"Yeah. My parents are these business people, who've taken advantage of the strained relationships and are probably some of the only global business people around."

"Oh." Aang paused. "Do they trade with the Water Tribes, too?"

"Maybe." She shrugged.

There was a small pause.

"… And you're blind?"

"Yeah, I see through vibrations. I can explain in details later."

There was another moment of silence.

"Well, I think it's about time we got outside again," Azula said and started to walk away.

As they followed her outside Zuko whispered to Toph; "Good lie."

"Been training with the best," she responded.

"Heh," Zuko couldn't help but shoot a glance at his sister. "Where's Ty Lee?" he asked, no longer whispering.

"Oh, she ran off to join some circus some time last year," Toph explained.

"Huh."

* * *

So, that was the prologue and the first chapter. Hopefully I've explained the background well enough. If not, it might come up later.

Anyway, I'd loved to hear what you think. ^^


	3. Chapter 2

Well, here we are with another chapter. I just realized I forgot to add one of those disclaimers, but, yeah, though I own the dvds, I don't own the show and stuff.

* * *

**Chapter 2**

When they came out, Mai was talking with Iroh, while holding Aang's new hat.

The crew had already secured the ship, and were now working on getting the personal belongings, primarily Zuko and Iroh's, off board.

Mai didn't seem to mind the interruption, but just handed Aang the hat.

He took a moment to look at it first. It was a normal, huge, plain hat. He knew that back in the old days, lots of people used them if they wanted to hide in a crowd. Or even if they just wanted to hide from the sun. It had a huge shadow, so the chance of getting a tan while wearing one was near zero.

"Can you just put it _on_?" He was shot back to reality by Toph's remark.

"Sorry, I got lost in thought."

"Scary."

"But, ah, I was just thinking," he said as he put it on, "what about Appa?"

"Oh. Right. Appa." Zuko suddenly remembered.

"What's an "appa"? Azula asked, disliking this new development.

"He's my flying bison," Aang said, like it was the most obvious thing in world.

"You have a flying bison?" Toph asked, suddenly interested, excitement shining in her eyes.

"You forgot to mention that," Azula said to Zuko.

"Yeah," Aang answered. "You ever seen one?" he asked.

"Well, no," she said, her tone implying it was a blind joke. "But, I was taught earthbending by badger-moles," she added. "Flying bisons are the airbending counterpart to badger-moles, right? The original benders?" she asked, a tiny bit cautious.

"I forgot, alright?" Zuko said.

"Yeah, they are," Aang said, smiling.

"Fine," Azula said, still displeased. "Get the bison," she continued, interrupting Aang and Toph's conversation. "And Toph, find a road where people won't see us."

***

Toph found a road like that and if anyone were close enough maybe see anything, she bended a high wall of earth.

Azula realized it made the hat point moot, and allowed Aang to take the hat off. While walking, she spent the time figuring the right way to present this to her father.

Iroh had stayed behind to help direct the crew, and had ignored Zuko's offer to help by saying that it was _his_ big return and that his father was sure to want to talk to him as soon as possible.

Zuko tried to start a conversation with Mai, who wasn't really helping him. She answered whatever question, she even deemed worthy of an answer, as shortly as you'd think possible.

It went a bit easier for Aang when he tried to speak Toph.

"Won't people be surprised when they see earthbending here?"

"Actually, no," she explained as she rose a new wall. "The thing my parents trade most with is labor force."

"That doesn't fit with what Zuko told me," Aang muttered confused.

"It _is_ pretty new development," Toph said. "There weren't that many earthbenders here when he left, and I doubt he's had any contact home."

They managed to reach the palace without anyone seeing them. They decided not to use the main entrance, but instead Toph bended an entrance through the palace walls. Aang, who was wearing his new hat now, kept being surprised by how good the little girl was.

While the spot the new entrance entered up to wasn't overrun, there were still a fair amount of servants running around.

Azula started assigning orders; "You, go tell my father I bring important news. You, get a room ready for our new guest. And you, get this" she motioned towards Appa "a place in the stables." A pause. "Now!"

The first pointed at, the messenger, hurried of in the direction of the Fire Lords chambers. The second servant bowed before Aang and he figured he should follow her. Aang also figured he should give Appa's reins to the third servant, and did so, sending him a smile.

"Now, Zuko, I'm sure you'd like to go see your old quarters. And you must have plans too, right girls?"

Mai nodded. "I have some time booked on the training court," she said before leaving.

"And I _was _unpacking before this whole harbor adventure," Toph agreed before leaving.

"Shouldn't I go with you?" Zuko asked Azula, before she could leave. "I know more about what Aang knows and doesn't."

"Actually," Azula started, "I haven't even told him that you were returning."

"WHAT!?"

Azula couldn't help but smirk at his explosion. "I wanted to make sure you hadn't just made some kid play the part. I wouldn't bother him with trivialities like that."

"You can't _do_ that…" Zuko started before trailing off.

"Besides, I trust that you have told me everything important about Aang's knowledge of the war," Azula said.

"Of course."

"Then you'd be useless anyway," she said with a smile, before walking calmly towards her father's chambers.

Zuko waited until she was out of sight. Then he sighed. He turned around and went towards his childhood home.


	4. Chapter 3

Here we are with a new chapter. I sstill don't own Avatar, but I ought to update more.

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**Chapter 3**

It didn't take Aang long to unpack. Even if the monks hadn't taught him to have as few belongings as possible, he had still left everything but his staff and Appa when he ran away. And Appa being taken care of by someone else, all he could do was to lay his staff somewhere and put his new on a shelf.

To do _something_ he spent a long time considering, and reconsidering, where to put his hat and staff. After he had found the best place for both, he sat down on the bed and just stared out in the air for a moment. So much had happened recently. Of course, it was only recent for him but it was still nice with a moment of peace, not that he hadn't had peace for the last hundred years and… Wait… When would his birthday be? This was getting _way_ too confusing_._

To stop the confusion before it really started Aang decided to go outside. He figured he would still be supposed to wear the hat, so he took it from the _oh_, so perfect spot he had decided without thinking much about it.

His current room was on the second floor, and he had gone out on a small balcony. He spent a moment looking out at the palace city. He had never visited before, but his friend Kuzon had been there during some public audience thing, allowing the less rich in, probably in an attempt to better the relations or something. Kuzon had told everyone about it and described the city vividly. It was almost as good as having been there.

And everything – everything – had just grown. The city was larger, quite impressive, considering the walls of the mountain keeping it from growing too large, and there were build more buildings, despite the grounds still being huge. In the middle of it all was the palace itself, and he entertained the thought of if he might be able to see Zuko or Azula through one of the huge windows.

Then he noticed someone else on the balcony.

***

"Father, I bring big news," Azula said as she bowed down to the floor before him.

"So, the messenger said. What is it?" he said, allowing her to speak again.

"Zuko has returned." She couldn't help, but let some of her spite into her brother's name.

"You must have heard of this before." There was a hint of disapproval in his voice. Azula knew that if she didn't have a good reason it would be more than a hint.

"I thought that Zuko might have become desperate enough to make some kid dress up. If that was the case, you shouldn't be bothered. But I've seen him airbend. He _is_ an airbender. There's no doubt."

"But _is_ he the Avatar?"

"He's rather young, barely older than the Bei Fong daughter. He hasn't learned the other bending disciplines. However, I can tell when people are lying. Especially when it's Zuko. He _is_ the Avatar. No doubt about that."

"Hrm." The Fire Lord signaled she could rise.

Azula sat up and continued; "But the real catch is that the Avatar is unaware of the war."

"How?"

"Zuko managed not to tell him. It would seem he actually _is_ useful once in a while."

"We can use this," the Fire Lord. "We can really use this. We just need to ease him into the truth and the Firenation's biggest threat will become its strongest ally," he continued with a smirk.

"It will require some of planning, letting everyone in the Firenation know of the lie without him finding out, but it _can_ be done," Azula agreed.

"What are you planning?"

***

"Hey," Aang said trying to remember what Kuzon had taught him. "Great view, huh, hotman?" It worked.

"Hotman?" a voice giggled. "Who taught that you stuff?" The other person turned towards Aang.

"Oh. Hey, Toph."

"What, _I'm_ not a "hotman"?" Toph said, still laughing.

"Well, you're not a firebender."

"Good point."

Aang walked out towards the edge. "What are you doing out here anyway?"

Toph shrugged. "The breeze is nice."

"So?" Aang asked, not finding it a good answer. "You're an earthbender. I'd think you'd find… A cave or something when you want to be alone."

"That's… not a very good reason. But, I suppose I might as well tell you the truth," Toph said. "My parents are in there," She nodded towards a room, assumingly her own. "And, well, I just needed a break."

"I suppose that makes sense." There was a pause. "Can I meet them?"

"Actually, I don't think that will be necessary," Toph said.

"Huh?"

"When they came, they told me that the Fire Lord has invited to a banquet tonight."

"Why?"

"Well, you need to be introduced. And Zuko need to be _re_introduced. It's the normal way to do this stuff."

"Um…" Aang started.

"Don't worry," Toph cut him off. "Servants will no doubt come and prepare you with everything. If you need to say anything someone will give you the script in time. It's not even noon. I'm sure you could learn a small speech."

"I'm not so sure," Aang said, worried, in stark contrast with Toph's order.

"Re_lax_, Twinkletoes," Toph said, unfortunately completely used to the world of formal balls. "Nothing will happen. And _if_ anything should happen, we'll be there. You'll be fine." Toph had turned towards Aang, and he could see she meant it.

"Well... Yeah, I might as well try," Aang said.

"That's the spirit, Twinkletoes!" Toph said and hit him.

"OW! And "Twinkletoes"? What?"

The two friends stayed out on the balcony and talked until servants came and rushed to make them ready for the banquet.

***

Zuko had gone towards his old quarters. He had almost just moved in when he was banished, but it still felt like his home. Except for the heavy layers of dust in the rooms the maids didn't bother cleaning (Why should they? No one expected him to come home) it looked exactly as when he left.

There was the old dresser, with clothing, by now far too small. There was the mirror the little group had found in a market when Toph had first been exploring the capital. There were the flowers-

Okay, _some_ things had changed. The flowers he had picked literally the day before he left, had withered. No one had cared about them.

He spent some more time rediscovering his childhood, but didn't finish before he heard a loud knock on the front door.

In the Fire Nation upper class it was considered polite for servants to knock loudly on an estate to let the owner know that people want to talk to him, and then enter themselves to not bother him, in case there were no servants in the estate to open. However if it was Iroh or someone else from the ship they would most likely stay outside until opened for.

Zuko walked towards the front door to not waste any guests' time, servants or not. He met a group of servants in the main foyer.

The first thing they did was bow down in front of the prince. After a quick second of surprise, Zuko quickly signaled them to get up. They told him about the banquet and hurried to get him ready in time.

***

Mai, too, was encountered by servants when she finished training. Not really surprised, though.


	5. Chapter 4

Gee, that was a long wait. Sorry 'bout that.

Also, I still don't own anything.

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**Chapter 4**

"Alright, let's go through this _one more time_," Azula said, patience wearing thin.

She had by then been telling Aang what to do for quite some time. At the moment, they were in a room in direct connection with one of the dining halls, the one where the banquet would take place.

"I'm in _there_," she repeated, gesturing to the dining hall, "introducing _Zuko_. _He_ goes in and introduces _you_. On your cue, _you'll_ enter. You won't have to say _anything_. Just _be_ there. Then-" Azula started walking and signaled the group to follow. "You'll just sit with us at _this_ table" she placed her hand on the table she was now standing next to. "And eat. Dinner. Understood?"

"I… think so. Thank you, Azula," he said, smiling. It was quite lucky for him he stopped bothering Azula at that time. If she had had to explain it one more time… Well, it wouldn't have been pretty. Or safe.

"Uh, Zuko?" Aang asked. "What's my cue?"

"I'll probably say something like… "Say hello to Avatar Aang.""

"_Don't_ say that," Azula said.

"I haven't had a chance to read my script yet," Zuko defended.

"Then _get to it_!" Azula cut him off.

Zuko was smart enough to do as she said and hurried back to the back room.

"Uhm…" Aang said, not really getting his question answered.

"He'll say "Avatar Aang" loud enough for you to hear. That's all you need to know," Azula said, still in a foul mood.

Aang, Azula and Mai went back into the backroom they came from. Zuko had found his manuscript by then and was reading it. Aang suddenly remembered something.

"_Yes_," Azula said, in a tired, cranky voice, "they have made vegetarian food."

"Heh, thank you," Aang said.

It was then the door in the other end of the room opened. A little girl in a green dress, with a huge smile and closed eyes came in. "Hello," she said in a sing-song voice.

"Wow," Zuko said, "I forgot you could look good in a dress."

The girl giggled. "Thank you," she said, blushing.

Looking around Aang noticed Azula rolling her eyes and Mai smirking at the scene.

Who was this girl? One of Toph's maids? They'd probably have mentioned it if there were someone else he should meet, though.

"Yes, you look wonderful, now can we get _on_ with this, Toph?" Azula said, annoyed.

"Toph!?" Aang was in shock.

The girl began to giggle again. It quickly transformed into Toph's laughter. "I can't believe that worked," she said, when the laughter finally stopped.

"I just… I didn't expect you to look so… _Girlish_," Aang defended.

"Of course you didn't," Toph said. "How's it going here?" she asked.

"Zuko's _still_ reading his manuscript, but at least Aang's calmed down," Azula answered.

"Shouldn't you be used to this sort of stuff?" Toph asked. "I mean, you _are_ the Avatar."

Aang glanced away. "I never really got a chance to get used to it," he said, not wanting to think back.

Azula stopped the conversation, by starting a new one with Toph. Aang was glad that they didn't dig too much in his past, and so accepted it.

He went over to Zuko and tried to get a look at his manuskript. "Can I have look?"

"No!" Zuko exclaimed, highly surprised. "I mean… It's written in the old formal script. You probably wouldn't understand it."

"I was raised hundred years ago," Aang countered. "It might be similar with what I learned back then."

"… Good point," Zuko admitted, "But this is Fire Nation script. What you learned was _Air Nomad_ script. There's probably a whole _world_ of difference," he tried.

"Or at least a culture," Aang joked.

Despite the joke, Aang accepted the excuse, or at least realized that Zuko was busy memorizing his manuscript. He decided to have another look at the dining hall.

The room's interior was a lot of small tables. According to Azula's earlier explanations the different families would dine together and then afterwards people were free to go over to whoever they wanted and discuss politics or whatever their choice of subject may be.

Aang had been told that he probably shouldn't speak unless spoken too. Generally, he wouldn't follow this advice, but for this situation it seemed like the best strategy.

Aang wandered a bit around in the room, but as he kept getting in the way of servants, he decided to back to the backroom.

Zuko was still reading, – though he probably had read it a couple of times by then – Azula and Toph were still talking about something and Mai was still watching from the background.

Aang spent a moment looking at his new friends.

Azula was wearing a different armor than earlier. If he had to, Aang would say that this one was for looking formal, while the earlier one was for… being able to respond quickly if necessary? Aang doubted she thought that much about it, though.

Toph's dress was very detailed and seemed to be of expensive materials. Her hair was put up, the hairstyle looking just as detailed as the dress. Both oozed of Earth Kingdom history, though he didn't know how exactly.

Zuko had his normal ponytail and a newer, more expensive and much more formal armor than he ever wore on the ship. He probably didn't have it back then, either.

Mai was wearing a dark red dress. It was simple but elegant, with sleeves that only covered her shoulders and something of a collar, but nothing else. Her hairstyle was also mostly kept the same as earlier.

Aang sat down in a chair next to Zuko. "Do you think I would be able to go see Appa?" he asked.

Zuko looked up. "Probably not," he said. Then he laid the manuscript away and, after making sure Aang wouldn't be able to see it, started a conversation with him, if only for his sake.


	6. Chapter 5

Woo! Actual Mai and Aang interaction! Been looking forward to this scene for some time. ^^

Still don't own Avatar or anything related.

* * *

**Chapter 5**

"Brothers and sisters of fire," Azula started, when all the families had arrived. "And friends of earth," she said with a nod towards the Bei Fong family. The grin on Toph's face alone made the comment worth it. "Many of us thought he would never return, but now he has returned. The impossible has been done and the Avatar has been found. And now _he_ is back. Our crown prince, prince Zuko."

As Zuko walked in, Azula walked a bit to the side. Not quite enough to give him the entire focus, of course, but enough that he would think so.

Zuko smiled to his audience. "In my quest to find the Avatar, I've searched the entire world, been to every corner of the world. In time I've even to both poles, in hopes of finding him. And it worked. Near the South Pole, in a block of ice, he was. And as Agni wanted it so that he had never heard of the war, we were in luck. And it will stay that way, until he is ready to help us end it. So here he is, the great Avatar Aang."

Finally hearing his cue, Aang came out. He was very nervous, but still smiling, and as he didn't have to say anything, he was quickly able to sit down.

The table they sat down at was fairly big considering only four people should sit there and in the front of the hall. Aang sat to the far right, with Mai next to him, Azula next to her and finally Zuko sitting furthest left.

Not much was said during dinner. Barely anything, in fact. The dinner it self consisted of … some mushy stuff. Surprisingly spicy mushy stuff, in Aang's opinion.

When dinner was over, Zuko left the table. As it was his reintroduction, he had a lot of fancy people to talk to. Toph quickly came over and took his seat.

Aang spent some time drumming with his fingers, inspecting every inch of the room, before deciding to start a conversation with Mai. "So…" he started, "How come you were already sitting here?"

It took her moment to decipher the question. Even then, her only answer was "Huh?"

"I mean, Toph was sitting with her parents, and they don't strike me as having a great relationship. You didn't sit with your parents," Aang tried to explain.

"Oh, they're not here," Mai said.

"Really? Cool. I guess? Where are they then?" he asked with a smile.

"They're-" Mai realized at that moment, she would have to tweak the truth a bit. She glanced towards Azula, not the least surprised to see her in the middle of a conversation with Toph. Unfortunately, the seating meant it was Toph, who was looking towards Mai and Aang, and as good as her vision was, she couldn't detect glances. "They're a sort of… diplomats," she tried. It could fit. If you wanted it to.

"They're trying to sort out the strained bonds? Cool," Aang said, obviously happy with the answer.

A moment went by.

"How come they left you here?"

"Huh?" Mai asked, having detached herself from the party again.

"Leaving a thirteen years old girl alone? It doesn't really seem fair. And you must have been even younger back then." He looked really concerned, Mai noticed.

She glanced towards Azula again, this time hoping she wouldn't be looking. She moved slightly turning her back toward Azula, to shield her words. "Long ago, we had this other friend. Ty Lee."

Aang nodded interested. He had already realized that Mai wouldn't tell just any story like it was a horrible secret.

"About a year ago she ran away."

The pause was just long enough for Aang to be about hurry the story.

"I was visiting Azula at the time and I saw first hand how much she freaked out. She went crazy. Not enough to go after her, but enough to make life a living hell for everyone around her. If I hadn't been there, she might have gone over the edge and done some thing _really_ horrible." As she was telling the story, Mai caught herself noticing that his scale of really horrible probably wasn't even close to some of the things she _had_ done. "After that, it was decided that I would stay in the capital with her. No one wants to know how much she would freak out if someone else left her."

"Wow." Aang looked quite stunned. "She doesn't look that off-center…"

"Trust me," Mai said, as she moved back to her former position. "I saw it."

***

It was the morning after the banquet. Everything had already gone back to the way it always was. And as such, Mai was nearing the end of her morning training.

She had yet to miss a target, and she doubted she would. She never did.

Turning around to hit the ones far away, then throwing some darts behind in a quick motion. As she moved again, she snuck a glance towards the target. Missed the center by a hair. She would have to improve in the future.

The next targets were about pretending to be under fire. It was impossible to actually get something like that assembled every morning, of course, but the training course had minor hills to hide behind. The trick was usually to duck and roll, and, more importantly, to throw the darts at start of the roll.

When she finished with the "under fire"-targets, the course was over. She resumed a less on guard pose. She stood like that for a moment, thinking about how to improve her aim among other things.

Then she heard someone clap.


	7. Chapter 6

Hello again. I actually intended to upload this yesterday, but then the site wouldn't let me upload. But better late than never, so here you are.

Avatar and everything related belong to someone else.

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**Chapter 6**

Mai's training had been impressive to watch. Impressive enough, that he felt it would be rude not to clap, when it seemed she was over.

When she looked over, he gave a slight wave and a huge smile. Seeing him, she bowed. "Avatar Aang," she said.

"No," Aang hurried to say. "No, no, no, no. Don't "Avatar Aang" me. I'm not over you in any way." He smiled again.

"…Alright," she agreed. "Why did you come?"

"Your training is finished, right?"

"Well, yes. Why?"

"Great. Would you like to go for a walk with me?"

"Azula might not like the idea," Mai said. She'd probably kill someone if the plan got destroyed already.

"She actually was there when I got the idea. She said that as long as one of you guys went with me it would be alright," he said. "Though I'm not sure why I need her approval," he added.

"You know, Toph is probably out to reexplore the city," Mai mentioned.

"I've talked with Toph."

"She didn't want to go exploring?" Mai raised an eyebrow.

"No, I mean, I've already talked a lot with Toph. _We_'ve talked like once. I'd like to get to know you better."

The expression that caused on Mai's face was hard to read. Happiness, surprise, maybe shock? Or are those the same? He decided that he would get better at reading her expressions.

"Sure," she said. "I'll have to do a couple of things first, though."

***

"How come it's so quiet?" Aang asked. That big a house just seemed to need _some_ noise in the background.

Mai shrugged. "The servants must be out doing their jobs."

"You live in this house all alone?" he asked, his expression filled with disbelief.

"Well, yeah." In Mai's world it would be more unusual if she _didn't_. "My family live here as well when they are visiting, of course, but the rest of the times it's just me and the servants."

"Whoa." A simple monk like him wasn't prepared for going to the capital of a huge nation, and seeing the way the rich lived. He had been to Omashu of course, but even if it was the second biggest city in the Earth Kingdom, the only really rich person was the king.

***

"Which way?" Aang chirped cheerily.

"Well, that depends. Do you want to go to the city or should we look at some nature?"

Just outside the palace walls, they had run into the first crossroad. Downwards and to the left was the poorer part of the city. Going to the right would lead to a multi-day trek across the Fire Nation. However, if you just crossed, you could find a small path, probably made by animals, that leads up and around on the mountains.

"I wouldn't mind seeing some nature for once," he grinned.

"Then it's this way. It's not very stable some places, though, so beware."

***

"This place is really beautiful."

They had been walking for some time and had come up at the top of the mountains surrounding the palace city. They also had a great view of the sea and all the islands of Fire Nation out in it.

"Yeah. It is." The tone in Mai's voice made Aang think she hadn't ever given it a thought before.

Of course, after some time he had stopped to notice how beautiful his air temple was or the complex patterns that clouds made when flying. If sensation doesn't fade with time, it probably wouldn't count as sensation, he mused.

***

"So, do you have any idea what's going to happen later today?" Aang asked at one point.

"Knowing Toph, she'll go reexploring," Mai said. _And knowing Azula, she'll join her_, she thought. "And then there's the training…" she added.

After she had been quiet for some time, Aang then asked "What do you usually do?"

Mai shrugged. "I train and I hang out with Azula and Toph when she's here and do whatever they should feel like. Time goes no matter what, you know?"

***

"Where have you been?" Azula asked when they returned.

"We went for a walk," Mai answered.

"Oh yes, he got that _infernal_ idea," Azula remembered. "Alright, you didn't run off," she continued. "Would have been quite mean," she added, so low that only Mai can hear her.

But Mai wasn't planning on introducing a _that_ evil Azula to the world.


	8. Chapter 7

Gee, I suck at updating regularily.

Also, nothing belongs to me. Well, I suppose this fanfic does, but the characters don't.

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**Chapter 7**

"What's in there?"

Zuko had decided to rediscover the palace. As Aang and Mai had returned before he started, it doubled as Aang's tour of the place. Now they were standing on a road leading up to a tall wall with huge doors where the road ended.

"That's a training court. Outside and with lots of space for an audience. It's one of the best in the palace. We always trained there. Let's go see who's using it," Zuko responded.

They followed the path to the huge doors. What they saw when they opened them, was a huge field. The walls were covered with bleachers and in the other end some soldiers were training. Closer to them, however-

"Hi guys!" Toph said. She waved with out turning around.

Toph and Azula were stretching with Mai standing near them, carrying a coat.

"What are you doing?" Zuko asked.

"Don't tell me you've forgotten about our biannual fights," Azula berated. "Have you really been gone that long?"

"You ready?" Toph asked.

"Always." The confidence in Azula's voice was hard to miss.

Toph created a huge boulder and threw it towards the soldiers in the other end. "Hey! Our fight space!" she called, using her hands as a tract.

Mai moved toward the bleachers and signalled for Zuko and Aang to follow her. The boys sat down on the bottom row, but Mai continued until she almost reached the top row, allowing her to view the path Aang and Zuko had just been on.

Azula and Toph assumed their stances. Confident smiles covered both of their faces.

For a moment, nothing happened. Then Azula attacked. Her fire kicks didn't harm Toph, though, as she quickly shielded herself with her element. When she felt the fire hit her walls, she sent them forward.

Azula avoided and sent small fire balls toward her. The plan was to send her backwards, before releasing a much bigger attack. Toph's response was to move to the side, instead. A huge wall of earth shielded her against the huge fire attack.

And then every step was already decided. They both knew that the next thing would be Toph sending a boulder toward Azula. And that Azula would destroy it with another fire kick.

They had been dancing the same dance ever since they first decided it would be fun to see who was the strongest. Sure, Toph adjusted the size of the boulder and Azula's fire had turned blue, but it was still the same melody.

Feeling Azula's movement, Toph got ready for her next move. It would involve boulders, rocks and, due to Azula, lots of explosions. It would be fun.

They fought long and hard. But it wouldn't last. In not that long time, Mai would stop them and they'd avoid a catastrophe. But it would still be a shame.

"Stop!" There it was. Toph went out of her bending form and felt Azula do the same thing. She raised her arms and when they came down again, no sign were left of a bending battle. Then Mai was next too the other girls and handed Toph her coat. It was red apparently, but the important part was that it hid her bending outfit.

They went over to Aang and Zuko. Azula sat down next to her brother and Toph sat down next to her, with Mai on the other side.

The boys were confused. It was obvious, both in their body language and their heartbeats. "… What just happened?" Aang asked, sounding highly confused.

There weren't time to explain – and, even if there had been, both fighters were still catching their breath – so Toph just pointed toward the doors. Sure enough, her mother entered seconds after.

"Oh! Hello, dears," Ms. Bei Fong said with what sounded like a smile.

Many bad things could be said about Azula, but she was certainly good at hiding her emotions when she wanted to. Toph was leaning on her, but even then she could only feel her heartbeat speed up for a moment. She contained her anger and instead said "What a pleasant surprise! Have a seat, won't you?" It sounded ever so false to Toph, but it had no problem fooling her mother.

"Thank you, dear." Another angry heartbeat. She sat down next to Mai. "So, um, what are we watching?" She tried to sound curious, but came out as confused and worried.

It was Azula who answered. "We're reviving soldiers." The fake niceness she never bothered using still were there. "It wouldn't be good if they couldn't hold up if they should meet actual battle."

Toph felt her mother moving forward, no doubt to get a glance at Aang, no doubt wondering how ambiguous they had to be. "No, that wouldn't be good."

Then there were silence. Ms. Bei Fong was out of place and the girls didn't want to destroy that image. Aang was simply too confused to ask anything, but Zuko broke the silence. "How come you were wandering about?"

"Your fathers are discussing politics," Ms. Bei Fong explained, "And try as I might, I simply couldn't listen to it anymore. When all the words go over your head and you get confused… Well, you must know what it's like. I excused myself and went for a walk."

Another silence. Toph directed her attention to the battle again. The soldiers… They weren't anything special. They were alright, maybe even good in their own scale, but nowhere near herself or Azula.

Her mother flinched. One of the soldiers had just been hit by a small fireball. It wasn't very special, probably not even leaving a mark, but she still flinched. If she didn't have an act to keep up, Toph would have laughed.

Ms. Bei Fong stayed for some time before saying "Well, it has been… fun, but I'll have to go now." She rose up.

"Bye, Mom," Toph answered in her best "little girl"-voice.

"Goodbye." And then she had left.

"Agni…" Azula muttered. "How can one woman be so _annoying_?"

Toph snorted, as she moved off Azula. "Try living with her."

"Yes, I can only imagine the challenges you face everyday. I don't get how you haven't run away long ago."

"I wouldn't get to be the Blind Bandit." She shrugged.

"What just happened?" Aang asked again.

"That was my mom," Toph said.

"So?"

"My parents don't know how awesome I am. Didn't we mention?" she asked, cracking her neck.

"Wha'? Why?"

Toph sighed. "They think I'm just some stupid _doll_ to be locked away. But I don't wanna be. So I learn earthbending and I fight in tournaments with it. And I keep it secret. 'Cause if I didn't, they'd freak. They wouldn't allow it. So it's a secret. And it's a _minor_ secret, compared to theirs. They keep _me_ secret from the world because I'm to "blind" and "fragile" to survive or some _shit_ like that."

"Oh." Aang still seemed confused, but was smart enough to not ask more questions.

"What now?" Zuko asked after a moment.

"I don't know about you guys, but I feel like beating people up," Toph said. She got up and walked out on the training course.


End file.
